Tentacle-Free Anime: "Mushi-Shi"(2005)

Have you ever felt like a plastic bag, drifting through the wind... no, that’s not right, let me try again; Have you ever felt as if certain events in your life were dictated by the possible slight of hand of a higher force that you couldn’t possibly explain logically or perceive unless you looked hard enough? If that sounds like you, or sounds familiar in any way, it’s because us humans love to explain away the unexplainable through emotions of Faith and love without sometimes looking deeper into the cause of or solution to the problem. We build whole religions around these notions, but sometimes when you really do look hard enough you can find the higher forces creeping around the corner, and sometimes, just like you, they’re only trying to survive and the events surrounding your life are merely a side effect. This is what Mushi-Shi, a 26-episodes Artland production sets out to explore.

Mushi-Shi: The Cure Lies in the Curse (2005)They are neither plants nor animals. They differ from other forms of life such as the microorganisms and the fungi. Instead they resemble the primeval body of life and are generally known as “Mushi.” Their existence and appearance are unknown to many and only a limited number of humans are aware of them. Ginko is a “Mushi-Shi” who travels around to investigate and find out more about the Mushi. In the process, he also lends a helping hand to people who face problems with supernatural occurrences, which may be related to the Mushi. [AnimeNewsNetwork.com]

Set in an earlier, more peaceful time in Japan the series follows a young adventurer named Ginko, a traveling “Mushi Master,” a person who can see and understand Mushi, creatures that work sort of like spirits of nature with supernatural abilities that merely try to survive and will unintentionally cause harm around them. Others who are effected by these Mushi and are swept up in their world rely on Ginko to help them understand their problems; which sometimes Mushi take form in a way a normal human can perceive them, other times however they might as well be mischievous ghosts.

Mushi-Shi poster

Ginko is a very compelling character to follow around, he has a very realistic and likeable personality so you never get tired of him, but he’s also far from infallible in his actions and beliefs, which keeps him interesting. There is also a plethora of supporting characters in each episode of Mushi-Shi, which makes sure you have many others to love than just Ginko. He is played in the English dub by Travis Willingham who really does a great job of bringing Ginko to life and causes him to take charge of the situations so that you actually care for him.

Being a FUNimation dub, another Anime distributing powerhouse, you’ll find other well-known voice actors from FUNi’s stable sprinkled throughout that it can almost become a fun guessing game.

Ginko

Mushi-Shi also acts like the ultimate lullaby, in the way that it draws you in through its Mushi mystery of the week and its soft, haunting and melodic music that scores the series by Masuda Toshio. The series basks in its ability to tell an all-knew story every episode, giving it a great and engaging formula to keep one interested long enough to not get bored. It’s like a monster of the week series; Ginko travels to a new place, meets someone being affected by Mushi, and tries to solve the problem. Sometimes he is successful, sometimes he gets lucky and sometimes he fails horribly. It is really neat to see all the different kinds of Mushi and how they interact with the world, I find them to be very inventive and sometimes very creepy. Unfortunately, this formula can also lead to one of the bigger flaws for the series, because some people may not be appreciative of it, it’s the fact that Mushi-Shi doesn’t actually end. One of the unique things about MushiShi is that every single episode, even the final one, is a completely stand alone tale, there is no grand underlying story that culminates in the final episodes for an explosive finale, just like every episode, the final episode ends and the music sweeps in to lull you into the Sandman’s embrace. There once was a time when shows with this kind of formula could go on for 100+ episodes, it seems almost fitting it ended early at the time of its airing, but I really wish it hadn’t.

Ginko trying to communicate with some Mushi, the green stuff being the Mushi.

The music is very unique and fitting for this series as well, with the opening song being an English speaking song called “The Sore Feet Song” by Ally Kerr. It’s quite ballsy in this day and age, but fits in well with the series wonderfully with as much traveling Ginko does. And the beautifully haunting music by Masuda Toshio is a masterpiece score to say the least, built to ease one into the world of the Mushi and then ferry you out when it is time to go, like you’ve been ferried into and out of a new and exciting world through music alone. It also is built in to keep one relaxed as they watch Mushi-Shi, like I once said for Afro Samurai, this series is perfect for relaxing after a long day at work and then you can come home, put this on and sink into the world offered up to you without very much thought, although if you look for it, this series really can give you a lot to think about how we operate in our world.

Some Mushi at work.

The animation in Mushi-Shi is also beautiful with fluid motion, vividly bright and deep colors and soothing imagery to the eyes so that you can stay focused and relaxed. There are very rarely any hiccups in the series when you watch it, and can be a great experience for animation buffs. Mushi-Shi is a rare treat among series about flying, colorful ninjas and eclectic giant robot space operas. It is a real down to Earth, fantastical journey where everything about it just seems to work. It doesn’t overstay its welcome, yet keeps you pining for more all the way to the end. Sure some episodes are better than others, but the experience as a whole is definitely something not worth missing.

Final Score: 4.5 Mushi out of 5

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